<h1>Should K-12 Grads Get a Job as a Call Center Agent?</h1>

Congratulations to the first batch of K-12 graduates! Now that they have finished senior high, these young grads have the option to choose between continuing on with higher education or to go get a job.  One of the main objectives of shifting the Philippine educational curriculum to K-12 is to equip young grads who cannot afford to continue on to college with employable skills to help these grads get a job right away. Although a majority of these K-12 grads will opt to continue on to higher learning, some would probably choose to get a job upon finishing senior high so they can either start providing for their family or save enough money to continue with their education after working a few years. For K-12 grads who will opt to get a job, I pose this question: Should K-12 grads get a job as call center agents? How would these K-12 grads benefit from getting a job as a call center agent? This article aims to clearly answer these questions and help senior high grads make a decision whether getting a job as a call center agent is a good choice.

Why Choose To Get a Job as a Call Center Agent?

Whenever we make a decision, the first thing to consider is “what’s in it for me” or the WIFMs. Usually, after weighing the pros and the cons, we should then be able to decide which path to take. Allow me to present a few WIFMs K-12 grads can get when they opt to get a job as a call center agent:

College Grads Preferred But NOT Required

When the BPO and call center industry started in the Philippines way back in the early 90s, the hiring process for those who wanted to get a job in this sunshine industry was definitely tough requiring applicants to be college or university graduates and licensed practitioners in their respective fields of study. And this was necessary back then because the Philippines needed to put the best people on the job in order to attract more foreign companies to outsource to the Philippines and make the country the top destination for business process outsourcing and call centers. Today, although the hiring process for call center companies still ensures only the most qualified recruits get hired, the educational requirement has eased off a bit to a point where college undergraduates and even high school graduates with the right attitude and set of skills are encouraged to try out. This is mainly because developments in workforce training over the past several years had made training new recruits so sophisticated to a point where even undergraduates can easily understand and follow instructions. A plus factor for K-12 graduates is that they have invested two additional years in senior high mainly for the purpose of providing them with employable skills and work experience so that once they apply to get a job, they stand a much better chance of getting hired even without a college degree.

No Experience? No Problem!

Today, due to the high demand for fresh recruits, most call center companies are putting more emphasis on an applicant’s willingness to learn than on experience. In fact, there are actually some call center companies that prefer applicants who had minimal or no prior work experience simply because it’s easier to mold fresh young minds that are open to new ideas and not bound by old habits and a fixed mindset. K-12 grads already had at least 80 hours On the Job Training as part of their curriculum. On top of this, grads who get a job as call center agents can expect paid classroom-type training specific to their account for at least a month to familiarize them with the account and the different customer relationship management (CRM) tools they will be utilizing plus a couple more weeks nesting on the operations floor to prepare them to take actual calls. New recruits are given ample classroom and live fire experience before they are assigned to their designated teams. Once in a team, further training and coaching are provided by the team leader and newbies usually will buddy up with tenured call center agents for support until they become more proficient on their calls.

Above-average Pay and Benefits

I have always strongly believed that the call center industry is a great equalizer! Of course, getting a good education is important let me stress this fact but it is only in the call center industry where a college undergraduate or even a high school graduate can expect above-average pay, benefits and incentives that undergrads cannot expect to find in any other industry. And that’s a fact! On average, a front-line call center agent makes around PhP 18K-20K a month plus incentives and bonuses. Health benefits, paid training, career growth and other perks (free coffee!) are your proverbial icing on the cake. This was totally unheard of twenty or thirty years ago.  In the days before there were call centers, if you never finished college, it would be difficult to get a decent-paying job, let alone a job that pays above minimum wages and benefits. Today, once you get a job as a call center agent, even without a college degree, you get the same above-average pay and benefits your other team mates get, yes even your team mates who have college degrees. Again, I’m not saying a college degree is not important. All I’m emphasizing here is that the call center industry is a great equalizer.

Career Growth

In a call center, metrics is king! Call centers do not discriminate between graduates or undergrads, male or female, straight or gay, young or old, able-bodied or physically-challenged. As long as a call center agent has the right attitude, skill, proper work ethics, and able to consistently meet the site’s metrics, the agent can look at career growth in the industry and aspire to climb up the career ladder. I have seen call center agents barely a year on the account leap frog over more tenured agents and become supervisors and managers. I had the pleasure of working with a supervisor who worked his way up the ranks despite his physical disability to eventually become Call Center Manager. Personally, at the age of 50, most call center agents would consider me too old and over the hill. But age never stopped me from trying out and eventually becoming a supervisor. I had the privilege of developing at least sixty call center agents under my wing and spawning two new supervisors within my 2-year stint as a sup. Career growth will always be open even for young K-12 grads who have the heart and determination to grow and succeed in the call center industry.
RELATED ARTICLE: Call Center Metrics

Gain Work Experience on a Global Level

Getting a job as a call center agent presents a unique opportunity for K-12 grads to experience what it is like to communicate and do business on a global level using the English language as the medium of communication. The young graduates would not only learn to improve their English communication skill but more importantly, learn the culture, nuances and temperament of their customers- what makes them happy, what upsets them, what to say and what not to say. The ability to communicate effectively in English and the experience gained working with customers overseas will definitely prove most useful should these senior high graduates decide later on to pursue other fields of endeavor, especially if their work requires them to do business with foreign principals or even if they opt to work overseas. On top of improving their communication skills, they also get to test their multi-tasking and IT skills in real world situations especially now that Artificial Intelligence is gradually being integrated into Customer Relations Management tools.

Learn Skills You Probably Won’t Learn in School

The fastest way to develop a skill is to be immersed in that skill eight hours a day. In a call center, senior high grads will be learning a lot of skills that they probably won’t even learn in school. Skills they will learn over time and take with them wherever they go and whatever job they do. Skills like integrity, critical thinking, teamwork, perseverance, proper work ethics, self-discipline, a “never say die” attitude, time management, knowing when to speak and when to just shut up, managing stress, working under pressure, knowing how to take constructive criticism, workplace politics plus a whole lot more. Find me a curriculum in college that teaches these skills and I will enroll!
RELATED ARTICLE: 5 Essential Call Center Skills You Won't Learn in College

Fun! Fun! Fun!

This is the one thing I miss the most after I resigned from my call center job. Despite all the difficulties and stress a call center agent goes thru every shift, the call center, in general, is a fun place. For K-12 graduates, it’s just like being back in your classrooms again only this time, you’re getting paid while having fun! You meet new friends and beautiful people! You join teambuilding activities and competitions! You get rewards and incentives for a job well done! You get to learn and earn! Stress and challenges will always be present in whatever job you choose but you won’t have half as much fun as you will in a call center. Take my word for it. Man, if I was only 30 years younger I’d probably be glamping or mountain climbing or spelunking or pigging out at a seafood buffet or have fun just simply being with the team!

Enough said. I’m pretty sure there are a dozen other reasons why a young senior high grad should go get a job in a call center but if these WIFMs here aren’t enough to convince him, then maybe he should consider other options. A call center job is not for everyone. Let’s be clear with that. Ironic as this may sound, the work is challenging yet monotonous at the same time. And of course, he has to deal with the thought of working nights while everyone at home is asleep and then trying to sleep in the daytime while everyone around the house is up and about. If, after weighing the pros and the cons, our K-12 grad still wants to get a job as a call center agent, great! He can go ahead and check online JOB POSTING SITES or have a friend or family already working in a call center refer him to recruitment. Good luck!

This article was written with K-12 grads in mind but just about anybody interested to get a job as a call center agent can definitely benefit from this. I hope you enjoyed reading this post as much as I enjoyed writing it. Let me know your thoughts by leaving a COMMENT below. That would be nice. It would be even nicer if you can help me SHARE this article so that your friends and their friends can benefit from this article as well.

Thank you for spending time with SUP CALL. Have a wonderful day.